Looking to turn an existing parking lot into a dedicated 12-storey datacenter, Clise Properties and the Graphite Design Group are waiting for a response from the Seattle design review board to start on their proposed facility.

With eight floors of data halls, the plan includes proposals to use the waste heat generated by the IT load as the heating source for this building, along with other adjacent properties being developed. The heat would be used as forced air heating in the datacenter tower and other local buildings. Clise has experience in this; it was the developer of the property that houses Amazon's datacenter in Seattle's Westin Building, which uses the waste heat it generates to provide heat to a four-block complex.

A look at the proposed facility shows that the top eight floors will be dedicated to the data halls, with the UPS systems and generators getting their own floors directly below. Underground would see a dedicated data vault floor, and a parking and storage tank facility at the base of the tower.

Having the storage tanks accessible without the need for elevators would allow the facility to be easily resupplied with diesel fuel in the event of a long-term power interruption, an issue that came to the fore when New York City lost power for an extended period in the wake of Hurricane Sandy. Being able to drive a fuel truck directly to the storage tanks is certainly a far better option than running bucket brigades to move diesel fuel to the floor that the generators reside on.

Thank You

By registering you become a member of the CBS Interactive family of sites and you have read and agree to the Terms of Use, Privacy Policy and Video Services Policy. You agree to receive updates, alerts and promotions from CBS and that CBS may share information about you with our marketing partners so that they may contact you by email or otherwise about their products or services.
You will also receive a complimentary subscription to the ZDNet's Tech Update Today and ZDNet Announcement newsletters. You may unsubscribe from these newsletters at any time.